Movies / Animé and Toons

Reboot Seasons 1 & 2

By Chris Zimmerman
March 7, 2011 - 12:51

Typically, when we grow up with a show or a film, we tend to look back on it through rose tinted lenses. Fortunately, this was not the case with Reboot. The Saturday morning cgi animated series (the first) was a perennial favorite of mine. The series represented something new, with fresh stories and interesting characters. Well over 15 years later and the series still screams cool. Sure, the animation is dated, but that hardly matters when a series is able to deliver more than just Saturday morning fodder nearly every episode.

Reboots history on DVD is a curious one. While the final two seasons had been available for purchase, this is the first time the first two are making the jump to Digital Media. Fans begged for a release for years, and then the last two seasons went out of print and no one knew what would become of the series. Fortunately, Shout! Factory picked up the rights and is finally releasing the series, starting with the first two seasons in one four disc set.

Reboot is set in the city of Mainframe, which in turn is set in the server. The citizens carry out their everyday tasks until “the User” sends a game into the city. If the citizens lose, they die and that portion of the city is destroyed. For that reason, the Guardians of the net assign Bob as the city’s defender.

Bob is a sprite. He has a human appearance with an odd pigment of skin. Other sprites include his friends Enzo and his big sister Dot. While Bob acts as a big brother to Enzo, his relationship with Dot is more complex, taking many twists throughout the series. Though they start out as good friends, the romantic undertones take center stage and they eventually grow closer as the series progresses. Enzo is also given a romantic interest in the form of a game sprite named AndrAla.

The earlier portions of the series are episodic, detailing Bob and the gang foiling the machinations of viruses Megabyte and hexadecimal. Out of the two, Megabyte is the primary antagonist, as Hex is really just misunderstood and wonky.

Despite the episodic nature of the series, there were extended arcs that played out magnificently and showed the writers weren’t afraid to take risks, a trait that is lacking from most kid’s shows. The season two finale is a prime example, as it pits all the main characters against a common threat. By the time the episode reaches its climax, one major character’s fate is left in doubt, and Mainframe is left in shambles.

Shout! Factory’s presentation of the series is about as good as one could expect. The series is given a full frame aspect ratio and a serviceable 2.0 stereo soundtrack. Sadly, the only bonus feature to speak of is a commentary track that spans the first three episodes. It would have been nice to have some production art or a featurette but when it comes to Reboot, I’ll take what I can get.

Reboot is a series that has long been a topic of discussion for those growing up in the nineties and with good reason. It’s bold approach to storytelling and unique visuals made it an immediate fan favorite. The characters are all enjoyable and are multidimensional in their personalities. Looking back on it today, the animation is dated, but the story isn’t. Having seen the series before, I was still surprised by the number of risks taken by the writing team.
As good as these first two seasons were it’s hard to believe the series gets that much better and I can’t wait for the next release.         

A

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12